Friday we took most of the day off from homeschooling to get out of the house! Occasionally, we just get cabin fever and need to get out! We did various errands like picking up my husband's ginseng that he loves, hitting the library, post office, and then hitting Hobby Lobby. Another blog mentioned they had 80% off their clearance which I figured even on my spending freeze would be a safe venture. I haven't shopped there very many times so I enjoyed taking the extra time to browse with the kids happily in tow! Imagine--there wasn't a single fuss!!! Praise God!
I hit major success! I found some fabulous finds for a total of $27! Not bad at all!! Especially knowing that if my new treasures get used I can resell to the local decor consignment store! :)
Here is what I found:
Two gold fleur de lis ornaments from Christmas which I will paint silver and put on the wall or somewhere to fit in somewhere in our house!
Fleur De Lis decor piece that is white with black worn effect, I am considering painting it black and wearing it to show the white underneath.
A fabulous picture that says Hope with a nest on it, perfect for spring!
Small black lamp with a red/black shade which has found a new home in my bathroom, now I am thinking I need to get some red satin/silk fabric to make my own shower curtain to tie together the yellow, red, black and white I have going on now.
Lastly, my favorite piece...they had on clearance a cloche with an iron metal base (I don't think that is what really went with it but a gal pieced them together and thought it was the case.) well regardless we couldn't find a second metal base like that so there was a cloche glass top sitting there with no price tag...I felt so bad for it I had to ask how to save it. The mgr said based off the $12 price of the combined other item, she would sell it for $6. Finally! A cloche of my own and not only that, I didn't even have to spend $10!!! I need to find a bottom for it but I am so excited!!!
Cameron Johnson The Bible says we are to be the lenders and not the borrowers (slaves). How amazing to put this into action for our kids before they are out in the world!
DID YOU KNOW FACT: I learned this from our financial course...
Credit card companies pay Universities and colleges a little commission (if you will) based on the of debt that college students rack up (based on sign-ups during the years there). So those cool t-shirts, water bottles and even MP3 players they will offer your kids when they just want the free stuff and then get themselves snagged in debt actually profits the campuses they are paying! WOW!
We are also working on paying down debt and taking a financial course through our church. It is exciting to learn that most people not making more than they already do can pay off everything including their mortgage in 6-7 years! Yes, I said that right, 6-7 years! We are already 2 years into our refinance of our house so we didn't have a great start to that, but I am definitely believing that in the next 6 years we can pay off our mortgage and debts!! Amazing! I am realizing so much in this period of time! We also came into extra money recently through God's divine power and we have already paid off one debt and we are starting on another one next week! Can I just say how exciting it is to see debt start to get off my shoulders and under my feet?
Lastly, I wanted to share another thing that God instilled in me. My husband needed some attention this past week. He is full commission at his job and having a tough time with sales can make anyone bummed out. While I wanted to pamper him last week we didn't have the money. But this week when we got in some extra unexpected, (we put most of it to debt!) but I realized he is worth it for me to splurge on! So as I was trying to utilize a coupon I received for flowers online the thought came over me...it won't be soon enough for my idea. Plus, God inspired me...grab one of the numerous vases you own and take it to the darling flower shop around the corner and get him some flowers and take them to him at work! Isn't God awesome? Not only did I spend 1/2 of what I would have online but he LOVED them! The florist is called House of Flowers and they are amazingly talented! I wish they had pictures of their shop on their website, it is so inspiring, charming and well decorated!!! They asked how much I wanted to spend and gave me a beautiful creation for that amount! I hope to send hubby with the camera to get a picture of the flowers at his desk! In addition to the flowers, I curled my hair and dressed up my jeans and drove to his office and surprised him at his desk. Then we (the kids and I) took him out to our old favorite indian buffet for lunch. When I used to work we had a lunch date every day, so he really misses going out for lunches! It was a fabulous day completely inspired by God and his infinite wisdom! Not to mention what a great inspiration to others in his office. He said most people are baffled as to why he received flowers JUST BECAUSE and can't stop talking about it!
I am feeling very blessed today for the adventures, ideas, inspiration and love of Christ that gives me so much fullness! I know that God is faithful and that he put me here to encourage so I truly hope this post can encourage you to find the joy, peace and happiness he gives. I hope you can search into the corners and minutes of your day and find the colors and touches of him in your life that brighten it even in the midst of cold weather, financial strains, exhaustion, fussy kids, illness or anything else you might be dealing with today.
Be Blessed!
Monday, February 23, 2009
Hobby Lobby Happiness
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Blog Giveaways
Go check out this website for a great giveaway on her blog. I am really getting into these blog giveaways and meeting new people! What a great little digital universe we have to explore at our fingertips! :) Copy and paste the link as I am having issues with the link uploader tonight. Sorry!
http://themaisyreport.blogspot.com/2009/02/my-first-give-way.html
Happy Sunday!
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Fro' Me to You
My dad should enjoy this post. As I thought of the various things I could post for my Fro' Me to You post I realized I have a few "back in the day" pictures uploaded in my computer! Here is a glimpse of me as the daddy's girl that I grew up to be. 
Here is the more recent version, this was over 6 years ago on my wedding day. My dad was the photographer, but my husband did a great job of taking the camera and getting a few dad and daughter shots for us. 
As the years pass, isn't it neat to reflect on where we came from and what we have become.
Happy Saturday! :)
Thursday, February 19, 2009
My Childhood Things
Wow, it has almost been a week since my last post! I have checked in every day but not enough minutes in the day to organize my thoughts! One of my 5 boys got sick on Friday night and then Saturday our fabulous day of love ended up with me lounging and resting to avoid getting ill myself! I caught up on a few movies I picked up from the library though and my darling husband made a breakfast that he knows I love! :) I also found a way to manage eating 2 of these fabulous cookies everytime the opportunity arose in the past week! :)
Now onto the childhood favorites...
Maybe it was that my body was starting to test the strength of my immune system (I used to long for my baby blankets when I started to get sick) or maybe it was simple nostalgia but I decided on Friday to pull out my old blankies that are off limits to the kids and show them. Yes, I am selfish with this set of things, they are my treasured-forever comforting-blankets from my childhood. If they were in better shape I might share, but one of them is so worn down and I just adore it!!! The Winnie the Pooh one has matching stripes on the back side and it has a cute hole from my puppy I got in high school and edges coming undone, but I still love it! My youngest son acted like it was a rare painting as he looked and said, "Whoa, this is old, don't touch it, right Mom?" Uhm yeah, moving on...
Here are a few of my favorite things:
It is amazing how this all fits in with the Sincerely Fro' Me to You timing, but I will be making another post in honor of that fun! :)
Friday, February 13, 2009
S.W.A.K. Valentine's Success
I just wanted to share today the blessing that it has been to find the wonderful women in blogger-country recently. Inspiration, support, love, wisdom and much more has been shared, found and appreciated!
If you are coming into this Valentine's Day with no money to spend and wanting to show your sweetie just how much they mean to you---here is an idea! Share your heart! This special holiday showcases hearts and love everywhere, often we think that giving monetary gifts to someone shows our love is special. Not that monetary isn't special, some of my favorite things are monetary, like my wedding ring! Although,my husband proves that the heartfelt things mean the most. When I email him to tell him what he means to me, out of the blue, he calls me in tears. When I push him to meet up with his old drum corp friends that he hasn't seen in months and he would rather stay home with me and the kids, he feels so blessed to have me looking out for him and wanting him to have male friends in his life. And just Wednesday when I started the post in honor of him at 9:33 am and I didn't finish it until around 9:45PM because I had so much love built up and my words flowed so many times in so many directions. The best feeling in the world was sitting next to him as I let him read it and watch his eyes well up with tears, have him hold me so tightly and thank me for marrying him. I love flowers, but I can honestly say that we have already had our Valentine's Day and it meant the world to both of us!
Love your honey with everything you have inside of you. It won't cost you a thing but it will be worth a fortune!
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Valentine's Wreath
A Little Birdie told me how to do this project! It is fabulous, easier than I thought and SOOO cute! I got so excited as I was finishing it! It took me about 2 hours I think, but that is with cutting the fabric and keeping two children busy with their own Valentine's projects.
Here is the finished product. I love it! By the way, the ribbon I found on clearance at Joann's in the wedding section for $.97 and the fabric was on sale so I only need a 40% off coupon for the foam wreath itself. Making this project less than $10 which I think it looks WAY cuter than the stuff they were selling for about $15 (on their 50% off sale). I fell in love with this fabric so I might have to find a use for it in our bedroom or another room, it is sooo pretty! I blended two fabrics together. Thanks for looking! 
About Me
- Sarah
- I am a Homeschooling, 5-boys havin', smile givin', Bible reading, health loving, research queen. Happily-ever-after married woman to the most talented drummer, best friend, supportive husband a girl could ever imagine exists!